Brief aan de Vaste Commissie voor Buitenlandse Zaken betreft de Situatie van Christenen in Syrië
Hengelo, 13 december 2013
ETNISCHE ZUIVERINGEN CHRISTENEN IN SYRIË: OPROEP TOT HULP EN INFORMATIEVERGARING BZ?
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Geachte leden van de Vaste Commissie voor Buitenlandse Zaken,
Namens de World Council of Arameans (Syriacs) (“WCA”) en onze dochterorganisatie de Suryoye Aramese Federatie Nederland (“SAFN”) vragen wij wederom uw dringende aandacht voor de aanhoudende etnische zuiveringen, de sluimerende genocide en de massale exodus van de inheemse christelijke bevolking van Syrië, waar wij hetzelfde ervaren als eerder in Zuidoost-Turkije en Irak.
1. Op 9 juli 2013 was er een Aramese delegatie naar Den Haag afgereisd om het ministerie van Buitenlandse zaken (vertegenwoordigd door dhr. H. Quarles van Ufford, plaatsvervangend directeur Noord-Afrika en Midden-Oosten) in te lichten over de voornoemde punten.
2. Op 17 oktober jl. vond hetzelfde plaats. In samenwerking met Kerk in Actie werd ditmaal de Syrisch-orthodoxe bisschop Z.E. Dionysius Jean Kawak uit Damascus uitgenodigd om de Vaste Commissie (voorgezeten door CDA-Kamerlid dhr. P. Omtzigt) alsmede de Directie Stabiliteit en Humanitaire Hulp (onder leiding van mw. M. Jansen) hierover te informeren. Zie: Syriac Orthodox Bishop from Damascus asks Dutch and German Parliaments, Media and Christian NGOs for Help
3. Tijdens deze ontmoetingen en in de daaropvolgende periode hebben wij, evenals onze zusterorganisatie de Aramese Beweging voor Mensenrechten (ABM), u allen en Z.E. dhr. F. Timmermans (Minister van BZ) afdoende documentatie doen toekomen via onze websites en mailinglijsten over de hachelijke positie van de Aramese christenen in en rondom Syrië.
Edesa Mutlu (SAFN) overhandigt de petitie betreffende de situatie van christenen in Syrië aan de Vaste Commissie voor Buitenlandse Zaken
WCA Letter to the US State Secretary John Kerry
APPEAL TO RECOGNIZE MASS EXODUS OF CHRISTIANS FROM SYRIA AND TRUE NATURE OF ‘REBELS’
Stockholm, 18 September 2013
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Dear Secretary Mr. Kerry,
We urgently appeal to you on behalf of the Aramean (Syriac) people, who are native to Syria, Iraq, Southeast Turkey and Lebanon, and more than 100,000 of whom have found refuge in Sweden. We ask you to acknowledge the below reality and come to the urgent help of our endangered people:
Call for Recognition and Support of the Endangered Aramean (Syriac) People in Turkey
Stockholm, 7 November 2013
Today, 7 November 2013, Mr. Kenan Anter and Mr. Gabriel Bozyel, respectively the Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the Syriac Federation of Sweden, met in Stockholm with the Turkish Prime Minister Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the Minister for EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator, Mr. Egemen Bağış. On behalf of the World Council of Arameans (Syriacs) and the Syriac Federation of Sweden, Mr. Anter discussed the Aramean question in Turkey and submitted a letter to Mr. Erdogan. The writing encourages the Turkish Government to continue developing its democratization efforts, and also calls upon the Government to recognize and support the endangered Aramean people in Turkey.
Click here to download the letter
The World Council of Arameans (Syriacs) (“WCA”) and the Syriac Federation of Sweden (SRF) appeal to you on behalf of the endangered Aramean (Syriac; Süryani in Turkish) people, who are indigenous to, but not yet officially recognized and supported by, Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Lebanon.
In May 2009, Your Excellency boldly declared that in the past century the non-Muslim minorities have suffered a lot and in many ways in Turkey, stating: “This mindset has seemingly not changed. It has been the same for many years in this country. They have chased members of different ethnicities out of this country. Have we won? This was the result of a fascist mentality.” Today, four years later, one is compelled to review the onground reality with Your Excellency’s comment.
The first major step in burying this attitude of the “old Turkey” with its denialist and assimilation policies was the latest democratization package, which you called a “historic moment for Turkey.” We encourage and support you to continue your reform efforts in shaping the “new Turkey.” We consider the package a first major initiative in preserving the endangered ethno-religious minorities in Turkey. It contains dozens of promising points, although we regret to announce that it also had shortcomings, including (but not limited to) the following important cases:
WCA Letter to the US President Barack Obama
URGENT REQUEST TO CONSIDER ALTERNATIVE SOLUTIONS FOR SYRIA
Stockholm, 4 September 2013
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Dear Mr. President Obama,
We urgently appeal to You on behalf of the Aramean (Syriac) people, who are indigenous to Syria, Iraq, Southeast Turkey and Lebanon, and more than 100,000 of whom have found refuge in Sweden (see the appendix below). We request You to reconsider Your current position on Syria.
